Trestle.



No. 777,001. PAIENTED DEC. 6, 1904. L. O. OLAYBAUGH.

TRESTLE.

APPLICATION FILED APR.14, 1904.

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WITNESSES: INVENTOR Q6 ..Lazm?/we Q flag/5a lay/o No. 777,001. PATENTED DEC. 6, 1904. L. 0. CLAYBAUGH.

TRESTLE.

APPLICATION FILED'APR. 14, 1904.

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UNITED STATES Patented December 6, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

'll'l -tESTLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 777,001, dated. December 6, 1904.

Application filed April 14, 1904.

To cal], whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, LAWRENCE OTTERBIEN CLAYBAUGH, a citizen of the United States, an d a resident of Toulon, in the county of Stark and State of Illinois, have invented a new and Improved Trestle, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to an extensible folding trestle, and has for its principal object the provision of a device of this character of simple and durable'construction which may be quickly and readily adjusted to different heights, which may be extended considerably in length when necessary, and which maybe folded into a very compact form for convenience in transportation.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be pointed out as the same is more fully disclosed.

In order to render the nature of my invention clear to those skilled in the art to which it pertains, 1 will describe its embodiment in a preferred form and will point out the specific features of novelty in the claims appended to this specification.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of. a trestle constructed in accord with this invention, showing the same raised to its full height and extended to its full length. Fig. 2 is a side view of the trestle folded and with the supports for the extensions detached. Fig. 3 is an elevational view of a scalfold formed by supporting a suitable platform upon two trestles constructed in accord with this invention, and Fig. 4 is a sectional detail view showing the preferred method of securing in the upper reach of the trestle one of the pins or studs by means of which the braces are held in adjusted position.

A trestle constructed in accord with this invention consists generally of an upper reach intended to be supported in horizontal position when the trestle is in use, a pair of supporting-legs pivotally connected with the up- Serial No. 203,115. (No model.)

per reach substantially midway between its ends, adjustable braces between the supporting-legs and the ends of the upper reach, extension menibers slidably connected with the upper reach at the ends, and supplemental supports detachably connected with the extension members at their free or outer ends. All of these elements may be varied as to form, proportions, and the exact mode of assemblage without departing from the spirit of the invention or sacrificing its advantages, and I do not limit myself therefore to the exact details of the structure shown and described, but reserve the right to make changes therein within the scope of the appended claims.

Referring to the drawings in detail, 1 designates the upper reach of the trestle, whichmay be of any preferred length and other dimensions.

2 2 are the legs of the trestle, and 3 is a pivot-bolt by means of which the legs 2 2 are secured upon opposite sides of the upper reach 1, substantially midway between its ends. Each of the legs 2 2 is provided at its lower end with a transversely-disposed foot-piece 4; of suflicient length to afford a wide base for the trestle, and each foot-piece is braced upon either side of the leg to which it is secured by suitable oblique brace members 5. The position of the legs 2 2 relatively to the upper reach lis determined by the adjustment of brace members 6, pivotally connected with the legs 2 2 near their lower ends by means of pivot-bolts 7 or their equivalents. The braces 6 are both provided throughout the greater portion of their length with a series of openings 8 for engagement with pins 9, securely fastened in the upper reach 1 near its ends and projecting laterally from the upper reach upon opposite sides thereof, as shown. The pins 9 are preferably transversely pierced, as shown in Fig. 4, and are secured in position within the upper reach by means of nails 10 or the like driven into the upper reach and extending through the openings formed in the pins 9. The braces 6 are held in engagement with the pins 9 to prevent accidental disengagement therewith by means of hooks v 11, pivotally mounted upon the upper reacn 1 adjacent to the pins 9, as clearly shown ih;

Fig. 1.

At each end of the upper reach 1, on the side opposite that upon which the hook 11 and pin 9 are arranged, I preferably provide a pair of projecting guide-loops 12, which are spaced apartsomewhat to afford sufficient support for a slidable member 13, arranged for movement within the guide-loops 12 and ad apted when extended, as shown in Fig. 1, to form a prolongation of the upper reach of the trestle, thereby increasing considerably the length of the trestle and adapting it to support a platform of greater width. The movement of each of the slidable members 13 within the guideloops 12 is limited by a laterally-projecting stud 1a at the inner end of each slidable member and a laterally-projecting pin 15 at the outer end of each slidable member. The pins 15 are oppositely arranged with reference to the studs 1a and are provided to form connections with supporting members 16, which may be employed in connection with the trestle when so desired. The supporting members 16 are provided throughout the greater portion of their length with apertures 17, within which the pins 15 will fit readily, and at their lower ends the supporting members have transversely-arranged foot-pieces 18, which are suitably braced by brace members 19 connected therewith and with the supporting members. The pins 15- are preferably transversely pierced for the reception of split pins 20 or other suitable keys, which may be employed to prevent the disengagement of the supporting members 16 with the pins 15.

Trestles of the character described in the foregoing paragraphs are especially designed for the use of men employed in the building trades, whether upon outside or inside work. The trestles are very strong structures, have broad bases which prevent the accidental overturning of the trestles, are readily adjusted in height from the very lowest height that may be required to the greatest height at which the trestle may be set, and they are susceptible of folding into very small compass, as shown in Fig. 2.

WVhen a trestle constructed in accord with the present invention is adjusted as to height and length and is used in connection with the other necessary structures to form a scaffold or platform upon which workmen may stand while at work, the secure fastening devices upon which the members of the trestles are held in adjusted position prevent any possibility of accidental collapse of the trestles, unless overloaded to such an extent that the timbers of the trestles are broken under the strain imposed thereon.

The provision of the sliding members at the ends of the upper reach and the supporting members arranged for adjustable connection with said sliding members make the trestle conveniently extensible to a much greater length than that ordinarily required and also prevent the possibility of the overbalancing of the trestle when weight is placed upon the extensions of its upper reach.

From the foregoingdescription of the construction and operation of the invention it will be readily understood that the adjustment of the trestle to any desired height may be very quickly accomplished by merely disengaging the hooks 11 from the pins 9, adjusting the braces 6 in position relatively to the upper reach, securing the braces in position by bringing the proper openings therein into engagement with the pins 9, and securing the braces by means of the hooks 11. If the extensions of the upper reach are to be made use of, the supporting members 16 must be adjusted relatively to the extensions to correspond to the adjustment of the braces 6, as will be obvious.

\Vhile 1 have described my invention as including the extensions of the upper reach and the supports for said extensions, it will be readily understood that I may use the rest of the trestle structure without making use of the extensions of the upper reach or the supplemental supports therefor, as under some circumstances these structures are wholly unnecessary. lVhen it is not desired to make use of the extensions and their supports, the supports may be disconnected from the extensions and the extensions may be detached from the upper reach or simply drawn into parallelism therewith, so as to be out of the Way.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. In a folding trestle in combination, a reach comprising a main bar and extensions slidably mounted thereupon on opposite faces thereof, a pair of legs having a common pivotal point of attachment to said reach at substantially the middle point, and lying on opposite sides thereof, braces attached to said legs and attached to said main bar on the faces opposite said extensions.

2. In a trestle in combination, a reach comprising a main bar and extensions slidably mounted thereupon on opposite faces thereof, a pair of legs having a common pivotal point of attachment to said reach at substantially the middle point thereof, braces attached to said legs and attached to said main bar on the faces opposite said extensions, and supports for said extensions.

3. In a trestle in combination, a reach comprising a main bar and extensions slidably mounted thereupon, a pair of legs pivotally attached to said main bar at substantially the middle point thereof, and braces connecting legs having laterally-disposed feet, said extensions being mounted respectively on the faces of said bar opposite to said braces.

4. In a trestle in combination, an upper reach, a pivot-pin, legs loosely attached to said pivot-pin on opposite sides of said upper reach and at substantially the middle point thereof, and adjustable braces between the ends of said upper reach and said legs.

5. The combination in a trestle structure, of an upper reach provided near its upper ends with laterally-projecting pins, legs pivotally attached to the upper reach substantially at their upper ends, braces engaged with said legs near the lower ends and having each a series of openings therein adapted for engagement with one of the pins carried by the upper reach, and hooks carried by the upper reach adjacent to the laterally-projecting pins for securing said brace in engagement with said pins.

6. The combination in a trestle structure, of an upper reach, legs pivotally attached to the upper reach substantially midway between its ends and upon opposite sides thereof, a brace for each of said legs pivotally connected with the leg near its lower end, a projecting pin connecting said braces with the upper reach, and an extensible member slidably mounted at each end of the upper reach opposite the point of attachment of the brace member connected with that end of said upper reach.

7. The combination in a trestle structure, of an upper reach, legs pivotally attached to said upper reach, brace members attached to said legs near the lower ends and provided with openings therein, pins secured in said upper reach and adapted to engage with the open ings in said braces, and pin-securing mem bers driven into said upper reach and extending transversely through the said pins.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

LAWRENCE O'lTERBIEN C'LAYBAUGII.

Witnesses:

MAsoN B. TRIOKLE, JAMES E. NOYES. 

